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Do you have high cholesterol?

03-01-2013, 11:32 PM

Hi all - The message that I got from the Primal Blueprint is to not worry about what your blood cholesterol levels are, as long as you're eating healthily. The last time I got my blood cholesterol checked was about 8 years ago, and my levels we all fine. At the time I was eating plenty of real food: meat, veggies, fruits, but also wheat and other processed foods.

Two months ago I started eating 'primally' and trying to follow Mark's other advice. I try to explain my diet to friends - I like to call it a change in eating habits - and they think I'm some kind of wacko. The discussion usually arrives to the subject of cholesterol and my friends tell my that I will die of heart disease on this diet. I know about Mark's opinion on the subject and I'm not too concerned about my own blood cholesterol, but I have seen several testimonials on this website in which people who are eating a primal diet high in meat and animal fats actually have cholesterol, LDL and HDLs that a right were CW says they should be. That, in my opinion is great ammunition to use in a discussion with these poor unenlightened people who are killing themselves with sugar and pasta

I will go to get my own cholesterol checked in a few months after I am down to a healthy weight. I'm still a few pounds overweight but since I've been on this diet I've lost 11 pounds (in 2 months) and I have never felt better.

So, my question for you folks who have been eating primally, is your cholesterol level where CW says it should be?

Comment

First post here (I'll do an intro when I've something useful to say), but can I ask what the equivalent numbers these would be in the UK?

My cholesterol was last checked and it was around 2.8 mmol, I think. I don't have the figures for HDL and LDL. I take a statin as I am a heart bypass patient from over ten years ago, and I also suffer from a few heart valve problems which don't help. So I don't see me coming off statins any time soon.

Comment

My cholesterol is 5.4mmol/l. Just high enough to be considered "not 100%", but not so high that anyone at the Dr's asked for a more detailed analysis.

--
Perfection is entirely individual. Any philosophy or pursuit that encourages individuality has merit in that it frees people. Any that encourages shackles only has merit in that it shows you how wrong and desperate the human mind can get in its pursuit of truth.

--
I get blunter and more narcissistic by the day.
I'd apologize, but...

Comment

I have had a Total C of over 550 for about 20 years while on the CW diet. Doctor's pushed statins like mad, but I'm allergic to all of them. After 3 months on primal my TC was 330's and I have complete faith that it will continue to improve. However my ratios are no all good!

Weight loss drives up the TC, so don't have the test taken for about 2 months after stopping weight loss.

"When the search for truth is confused with political advocacy, the pursuit of knowledge is reduced to the quest for power." - Alston Chase

Comment

First post here (I'll do an intro when I've something useful to say), but can I ask what the equivalent numbers these would be in the UK?

My cholesterol was last checked and it was around 2.8 mmol, I think. I don't have the figures for HDL and LDL. I take a statin as I am a heart bypass patient from over ten years ago, and I also suffer from a few heart valve problems which don't help. So I don't see me coming off statins any time soon.

Your thoughts on the differing number systems, please.

multiply by 40 to get American equivalent.

Comment

A few years ago when I was just 16 and again at 17 I was told I had high cholesterol, with too much LDL, not enough HDL, and too much overall according to my former doctor. I haven't had it checked in probably 3 years now, but I know I really should so I can see what a year and a half of primal eating has done for me.

Comment

It's funny, for me, I've always had cholesterol levels considered good by the doctors' standards. Even when I was 100 lbs overweight and eating a low calorie, low fat diet trying to lose weight. I had my insurance physical last fall, and after losing 65-70 pounds at that point and moving to a mostly primal diet, but numbers were nearly the same and still considered good by the doctors. I've lost another 10 lbs, but I'm not going back to the doctors until I need to.